Etsy founder Rob Kalin used to be fond of referencing Etsy’s future IPO. But lately, the crafty Dumbo-based marketplace, which says it has been in the black since 2009, has eased up on the rhetoric. After the latest raise, CEO Chad Dickerson intimated that funding from any new sources was not on the immediate horizon. “The funding also ensures that the company has the operating funds to last for many years so that the Etsy community is in a position to succeed for a very long time,” he wrote.
Etsy, Etsy’s friends, and Etsy’s former employees maintain that its investors haven’t and don’t pressure the company for an exit. But considering Etsy is almost seven years old and has raised more than $90 million total, a public offering seems inevitable. The company’s designation as a B Corporation, which means it must undergo outside review to maintain a certification of best practices, also seemed to be a preemptive guard against the corruption that comes from scaling. The Wall Street Journal managed to elicit comment on this point from Mr. Dickerson during an interview about Etsy’s expansion into Australia, its fourth-largest market for buyers.
“Etsy’s definitely the kind of company that can go public. We’ve been breakeven since 2009 and our revenues are really strong,” Mr. Dickerson said. However, he hedged, “I think it’s important to remain an independent, private company as long as we can in order to be able make better long-term decisions.” Down NYSE, down Nasdaq.
